At a press conference today 5 Bhopal based organizations active among the survivors of Union Carbide disaster and those exposed to the ground water contamination announced that they will launch their indefinite agitation in New Delhi from July 26th. The indefinite dharna at Jantar Mantar to pressure the central government on issues of compensation, health care & rehabilitation, Legal Action against Union Carbide & Dow Chemical & Hazardous waste clean up.

“The arbitrary recommendations of the Group of Minister (GoM) will deny compensation to 93% of those that the government has certified as those who have suffered gas exposure. Because of GoM’s hasty decision 91% of people in J.P. Nagar community opposite Union Carbide factory who have only received Rs 25,000 as compensation so far will receive no additional sum. We simply cannot allow this and will not rest till all gas victims receive additional compensation. ,” says Rashida Bee of Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Stationery Karmchari Sangh. The organizations also plan to hold the government to its promise to file a curative petition against the Supreme Court’s 1989 judgment on the settlement, in order to extract more compensation from Union Carbide Corporation-USA.

Satinath Sarangi of Bhopal Group for Information & Action charged the central government of going back on its promise of setting up of an empowered commission for long term medical care & rehabilitation of Bhopal victims. “In sanctioning over Rs. 500 crores to the Madhya Pradesh government the central government has chosen to ignore rampant misutilization & misappropriation, non implementation of vital projects & moreover the adverse comments of its ministries & planning commission. We will continue to fight for setting up of the empowered commission that the Prime Minister had promised us in 2008,” he said.

The organizations expressed satisfaction that the government has filed an application for Rs 350 crores from Dow Chemical for clean up of hazardous waste. If the government is serious about making the Polluter pay, it should become a party in the ongoing litigation in the US federal court on the issue of contamination. “We also want the government to move on the extradition of all foreign accused absconding for 18 years. Along with Anderson the government needs to bring the authorized representatives of Union Carbide Corporation-USA, Union Carbide Asia, Hong Kong and Union Carbide Asia Pacific, Hong Kong said Mr Balkrishan Namdeo of Bhopal Gas Peedit Nirashrit Pension Bhogi Sangharsh Morcha.

Syed M. Irfan of Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Purush Sangharsh Morcha expressed his dismay over the lack of response on the part of the central government with regard to offer of financial & technical assistance of European Union for the scientific assessment of depth & spread of the poisons in and around the Bhopal factory. He said that such an assessment is essential to decide on the best means of disposal and the damage payable by Dow Chemical. He said that the survivors of Bhopal and residents around the Pithampur incinerator will not allow the government to transport & incinerate the hazardous waste from Union Carbide.
“We are also demanding the government scrap plans of dismantling the plant structure in the abandoned Union Carbide factory. How can they do it? It is part of world history. Instead of bringing it down the government must ensure that it is no longer poisonous and make them a part of the memorial. Also we will ask for government initiative in including material on the Bhopal disaster in school and college text books.

Five Bhopal based organizations working among the neighbourhood residents of the abandoned Union Carbide factory today welcomed the legal initiative of the central government in the state High Court seeking Rs 350 crores from Dow Chemical, current owner of Union Carbide as the first installment towards the cost of the clean up and remediation of soil and groundwater in and around the factory.

The organizations also expressed satisfaction with today’s order of the High Court directing Dow Chemical to disclose its assets, liabilities and other business interests in India and to also to produce its merger documents in the next 15 days.

Two of the five organizations who are interveners in the ongoing case in the state High Court concerning legal liability for the environmental damage due to hazardous waste have been directed by a double bench of Justice Arun Mishra and S.C. Sinha today to make their submission on the issue of addressing the issues of hazardous waste and environmental remediation with seven days. The central and state governments have also been issued similar directions.

The organizations said that they found it interesting that corporate lawyer Harish Salve replaced Congress I spokesperson Abhishek M Singhvi as the counsel for Dow Chemical in the proceedings in the High Court today.

“We hope that with its new found vigour, the central government will soon accept the offer of technical and financial assistance by the European Union for a scientific assessment of depth and spread of toxic contamination and remediation measures.” said Rashida Bee, President of the Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Stationery Karmchari Sangh. She said that on June 17 the European Union has made the offer to the Indian government which is to be funded by the Indo-German Environment Programme. 23 members of the European Parliament have written to the Prime Minister on June 23 expressing their support to the European Union’s offer of assistance.

The organizations expressed regret that the state government is yet to catch up with the central government on the matter of toxic contamination. “Fifteen to twenty thousand people are still forced to drink contaminated ground water because of the negligence of the state government that was provided sufficient funds for supply of clean water four years back” said Mr. Balkrishna Namdeo, President of the Bhopal Gas Peedit Nirashrit Pension Bhogi Sangharsh Morcha.

The organizations said that they will present the opinions of their experts on the latest reports of the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI), Nagpur, Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT), Hyderabad and National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI), Hyderabad on the depth and spread of hazardous waste and contamination, to the Indian government by the end of this month. Experts in hydrogeology, toxicology and hazardous waste management from India, UK, Germany and Netherlands will be contributing to this critique.

Hindi.bhopal.net is up and running. Apart from news in Hindi we shall gradually add information primarily for people living in Bhopal. This will include health information and help with documentation and dealing with the authorities. We hope to add future vernacular websites in Tamil, Urdu, Kannada and are looking for people who will take on the editorship of these language sites. Volunteers permitting we may also open sites in French, Italian, German, Spanish and other languages. VISIT HINDI.BHOPAL.NET

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#Bhopal33 | PM Modi and CM Chauhan: Are You Listening?

Having failed, despite repeated requests, to present their grievances before the Prime
Minister for the last three years and the Chief Minister for the last six years, survivors of
the Union Carbide disaster in Bhopal have launched a novel way to draw much
needed attention to their five most urgent issues of rehabilitation, justice and adequate
compensation.

Help the survivors draw the attention of the Prime Minister and the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh.

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